Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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AN LTNDERWATI'sR CABLE PROTECTION PIPE
TBCHNICAL FIELD
The present invention relates to an underwater
cable protection pipe which is formed of two identical
longitudinal half-pipe sections interconnected
together by integrally formed mating connectors
provided at a clamping ball end of the pipe sections
and wherein the clamping ball end constitutes an
articulated joint when pipes are interconnected
together end-to-end.
BACKGROUND ART
Articulated pipes are used to protect submarine
1s cables when burial of submarine cables is not feasible
due to hard sea bottom or when burial creates
environmental concern since it disturbs the seabed
sediments. Existing articulated pipes are made of
short sections of pipe split in two longitudinal
halves. Each section has one small ball type end and
one large ball type end. The large ball type end
encloses over the small ball end of the previous
section holds it captive. This locks the end of the
previous section and provides an articulated joint
zs that can adjust itself to the seabed profile.
There are two types of existing articulated
pipes. The section of the first pipe is made of two
identical halves that need to be bolted together.
This means a very long and fastidious task for the
divers installing team. The second type solves the
problem of the bolts by using self-locking parts.
This system comprises two different cast segments
which are identified as uppers and lowers. The upper
part hooks fitting on the stubs of the lower part.
Having two different parts bring other problems, such
as, shipment miscount (different number of lowers and
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uppers at one site) and need for two different molds for a
more expensive fabrication process. All the existing
articulated pipes are also made of ductile iron.
DISCLOSURE OF INVENTION
It is a feature of the present invention to provide
an underwater cable protection pipe which overcomes all of
the above-mentioned disadvantages of existing articulated
pipes.
Another feature of the present invention is to
provide an underwater cable protection pipe which is formed
of two identical longitudinal half-pipe sections and which
are cast with integrally formed connectors whereby the pipe
halves are connected together without the use of bolts or
other type fasteners which have to be installed under water.
Another feature of the present invention is to
provide an underwater cable protection pipe which is easier,
and faster to install and cheaper to produce and wherein the
pipe is made of anodized aluminum thereby resulting in a
significant reduction in weight as compared to existing
ductile iron pipes.
According to the above features, from a broad
aspect, the present invention provides an underwater cable
protection pipe which comprises two identical longitudinal
half-pipe sections interconnectable with one another by
integrally formed interlocking meeting connectors. The
half-pipe sections when interconnected together in
juxtaposition form a longitudinal hollow pipe having a stub
end and an articulatable clamping ball end shaped to
clampingly receive the hub end of a like pipe to
interconnect two or more of the pipes end-to-end about a
submerged cable. The connectors are formed on opposed sides
of the clamping ball end and when interconnected are
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disposed on a diametrical axis of the ball end
permitting the half-pipe sections to pivot on the
connectors. The connectors are constituted by a
transverse pin projecting laterally adjacent the top
end edge of the ball end of the half-pipe section and
a hook connector projecting on an opposed side of the
ball end.
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BRIEF DESCRIPTIQN OF THE DRAWINGS
A preferred embodiment of the present invention
will now be described with reference to the
accompanying drawings in which:
FIG. ]. is a perspective view showing two
underwater cable protection pipes constructed in
accordance with the present invention and secured
about an underwater cable;
FIG. 2 is an enlarged perspective view showing
the construction of the clamping ball end of the pipe
and its integrally formed interlocking connectors;
FIG. 3 is an elevation view showing the shape
and construction of a half-pipe section;
FIG. 4 is an end view of Figure 3; and
FIG. 5 is a section view along section lines
V-V of Figure 3.
MODES FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTI_QN
Referring now to the drawings and more
zo particularly to Figure 1, there is shown generally at
10 two underwater cable protection pipes 11 -and 11'
which are interconnected end-to-end about an
underwater cable 12 to protect the cable. The
underwater cable protection pipe 11 is comprised of
two identical longitudinal half-pipe sections 13 and
131 which are interconnected together by integrally
formed interlocking mating connectors, generally
indicated at 14, and which will be deacribed in detail
later. As hereinshown when these pipe sections 13 and
13' are interconnected together they form the
longitudinal hollow pipe 11.
Each of the half-pipe sections 13 and 131 are
cast from anodized aluminum which is much lighter than
ductile iron pipes which have heretofore been utilized
for underwater protection pipes. The half pipe
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sections 13, 131 are cast with a stub end 15 and an
articulatable clamping ball end 16.
With further reference now to Figures 2 to 5,
it can be seen that the interlocking connectors 14 are
integrally formed on opposed sides of the clamping
ball end 16 of the half-pipe sections 13, 13'. The
connectors 14 are disposed on a diametrical axis 17
(see Figure 4) of the clamping ball end 16 and permit
the half-pipe sections to interconnect and pivot to
effectuate the interconnection.
As shown, the connectors 14 are constituted by
a transverse pin 18 which, as better seen from Figures
2 and 4, which projects laterally adjacent a top end
edge 19 of the ball end 16 of the half-pipe sections
1s 13. A hook connector 20 projects on an opposed side
of the ball end 16 and has an arcuate jaw formation 21
which is disposed in axial alignment with the
longitudinal central axis 22 of the transverse pin 18.
The center of the arc or radius of the arcuate jaw
formation 21 lies on the longitudinal central axis 22
of the pin whereby the transverse pin 18 may be
received in friction fit within the arcuate jaw
formation 21 to provide pivoting of the interconnected
half-pipe sections 13 and 13', as shown in Figure 1.
Because the half-pipe sections are inverted, the jaw
formations 21 of a top half-pipe section lies above
the pin of a bottom half-pipe section, and the jaw
formation on the bottom half-pipe section which is on
the other side projects under the pin of the top half-
pipe sections_ Accordingly, as shown in Figure 2, the
half-pipe sections 13 and 13' interlock but can still
pivot as shown in Fig. 1 to permit interconnection and
interlocking of a series of pipes 11 together.
Accordingly, it can be seen that with one
standard half-pipe section, when these are
interconnected in juxtaposition, and pipes 11
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interconnected end-to-end, they can provide protection
along any given cable length without the use of
fasteners except for the last assembled pipe which
hooks all the pipes together.
5 The stub end 15 of the half-pipe section is
constituted by an enlarged curved iside wall end
section 15' whereby when two halve-pipe sections are
interconnected in juxtaposition, it forms the small
ball end 15. This small ball end 15 has an outer
lo diametrical surface which is dimensioned to fit within
the inner diametrical surface 23 (see Figures 3 and 5)
of the clamping ball end 16 whereby to interconnect
pipes end-to-end and to permit limited articulation
thereof. The clamping ball end 16 defines an outer
clamp ledge 27 which forms a semi-circular opening 28.
When both half-pipe sections 13 and 13' are
interconnected in juxtaposition, the ball end of the
assembled pipe 11 defines a restricted circular
opening to clamp about the side wall 13 of the pipe
and retain the small ball end section 15 captive
within the enlarged inner end of the ball end 16 while
still permitting articulation.
As better seen in Figures 2 and 3, the clamping
ball end 16 is also provided with a pair of horizontal
flanges 24 and 25 which terminate flush with the
surface of the top end 19 of the half-pipe. sections,
as better seen from Figure 4. They are located behind
the ball section of the clamping ball end 16 and
project outwardly of the outer side wall 25 of the
half-pipe sections. A transverse hole 26 is provided
in each of these flanges at a predetermined location
whereby when the half-pipe sections 13 and 13' are
matingly interconnected together, these holes 26, in
juxtaposed flanges 24 and 25, will align together.
The purpose of these holes is to permit a last one of
a series of protection pipes 11 to be locked by a bolt
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fastener thereby securing or interlocking the series
of pipes while permitting articulation therebetween.
Accordingly, it can be appreciated that many pipe
sections can be easily assembled under water and
connected end-to-end in a manner which is easy and
very fast as compared to prior art pipe installations.
The connector to lock the last pipe section may
be a quick lock type connector which requires very
little time to install. When the last pipe section is
locked, then automatically the entire series of the
pipes are locked without having to secure fasteners
about each pipe section, as is the case with the prior
art. Also, because the pipes are formed of identical
half-pipe sections, a single mold is required to
i5 produce these pipe sections and it greatly facilitates
installation and inventory control. The installer is
not required to inspect pipe halves to identify the
bottom or top half-pipe section because these are
identical and therefore this greatly facilitates the
io installation.
It is within the scope of the present invention
to cover any obvious modifications of the embodiment
described herein, provided such modifications fall
within the scope of the appended claims.
